Simple Closet Organizing Ideas

Organize from the Outside, In

Many people get tangled up in their attempts to organize their closet because they start their efforts with everything still inside. This is simply not an efficient way to do things. The first step in performing an overhaul of your closet is to take absolutely everything out. There are two reasons why this is useful:

It allows you to visualize where everything would best fit. It gives you a better perspective on how much space there really is. Your closet can be made to look bigger or smaller than it really is depending on what’s inside it – when it’s empty, there are no illusions.

The other big reason this is a good idea is that you’ll find any buried junk that shouldn’t even be in your closet to begin with, as well as old clothes you never wear, which you can then throw away or give to charity. This means there’s less to put back in the closet, which automatically makes the organization process easier.

Keep Like with Like

While your clothes are out of your closet, sort them into their different types – pants, shorts, collared shirts, t-shirts, sweaters and so on. Figure out what clothes you need hangers for, and get hold of the right number. The means collared shirts and jackets – flat items of clothing, like t-shirts, should be folded and do not require hangers, so don’t waste hanging space on them.

Sort the “Oftens” from the “Seldoms”

If you’re like most people, you’ll have certain clothes you wear a lot more than others. You should organize your closet so the most frequently worn clothes or most often used items are the most accessible, and anything you rarely use but absolutely must keep hold of is more out-of-the-way. Ideally your closet should be set up so that everything is easily accessible, but little tricks like keeping your favorite t-shirts on a shelf at eye level help you find things quickly when you’re in a rush.

Keep in mind that the types of clothes you wear “often” or “seldom” will change with the seasons. Arrange your closet so that you can easily switch up the system, to make winter clothes more accessible in winter and vice versa.

If you find you really do have more stuff than your closet can hold and you can’t part with it, box up the out-of-season gear and store it somewhere else until the time comes to bring it out again. Chances are by that time your tastes may have changed by then and you’ll want to get rid of some of it anyway. If you have an entrepreneurial streak, you might even be able to turn some of those old clothes into cash.